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Corporate or Commercial?
I am a new licensed aircraft mechanic.
I am trying to decide if I should go into commercial or business jets. can someone give me advice on the upside and down side to both.
Pay
Advancement opportunities
leadership roles?
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2 answers
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Larry’s Answer
Nicco,
I have experience working as an A&P mechanic (with an IA) with a Cirrus flight service center which also has a flight school and manages clients' Cirrus aircraft maintenance. All of my work falls under Part 91. Your question refers to Part 121 and Part 135 operations. Keeping that in mind I can tell you that I enjoy working in a fleet environment. We have a small nucleus of great mechanics that get along extremely well. Because we are small (5 full-time mechanics) we have to do all aspects of maintenance. We also have to taxi our aircraft from the parking area on the other side of the airport to our maintenance hangar. All of the aircraft we work on have piston engines and propellers. Generally, in commercial situations, the aircraft are powered by turbine engines (some might be turbo prop).
Now that you know where I'm coming from, all I can say is that my pay was very good, my hours were normal first shift 40 hours per week, sufficient holiday and vacation paid time off, and no weekend work. We had plenty of work and could just about as many overtime hours we wanted. Anytime there was a special need for an A&P to be on duty off-hours, we were asked if we wanted to work--never forced. I have heard that commercial and corporate situations are not as friendly and don't pay as well. FYI. My company does pay for additional specialized training. They paid for my schooling to get my IA.
I hope telling you a little about non-commercial (or non-corporate) environs might help you somehow. Hopefully you'll get somebody from the jet world to help you fill in the Part 121 and Part 135 blanks. Best of luck to you.
Regards,
Larry Apfel
I have experience working as an A&P mechanic (with an IA) with a Cirrus flight service center which also has a flight school and manages clients' Cirrus aircraft maintenance. All of my work falls under Part 91. Your question refers to Part 121 and Part 135 operations. Keeping that in mind I can tell you that I enjoy working in a fleet environment. We have a small nucleus of great mechanics that get along extremely well. Because we are small (5 full-time mechanics) we have to do all aspects of maintenance. We also have to taxi our aircraft from the parking area on the other side of the airport to our maintenance hangar. All of the aircraft we work on have piston engines and propellers. Generally, in commercial situations, the aircraft are powered by turbine engines (some might be turbo prop).
Now that you know where I'm coming from, all I can say is that my pay was very good, my hours were normal first shift 40 hours per week, sufficient holiday and vacation paid time off, and no weekend work. We had plenty of work and could just about as many overtime hours we wanted. Anytime there was a special need for an A&P to be on duty off-hours, we were asked if we wanted to work--never forced. I have heard that commercial and corporate situations are not as friendly and don't pay as well. FYI. My company does pay for additional specialized training. They paid for my schooling to get my IA.
I hope telling you a little about non-commercial (or non-corporate) environs might help you somehow. Hopefully you'll get somebody from the jet world to help you fill in the Part 121 and Part 135 blanks. Best of luck to you.
Regards,
Larry Apfel
Thank you for taking the time to help.
Nicco
Updated
Alex’s Answer
The upsides and downsides to both will depend much on your personality and what you want in life. I work for a legacy carrier and I can tell you that it's wonderful to have a strong paycheck, stable benefits, travel perks, etc. However the downside is that you're just a number, you'll work night shift for many years, etc. In the airline industry, you don't really have much "advancement" per se. Instead of a career ladder, think of it as a corporate spider web. You can be an instructor, an inspector, a crew chief, or you could make a lot more by becoming a maintenance controller, etc. All jobs within union protection. The other route is going through management (outside of the union's protection) and trying to advance the traditional ladder that way. At my airline, that route is a revolving door. But because of most jobs being in a union, everything is also seniority based, not merit.
I cannot speak to the business perspective or GA, but all in all, I really enjoy working in the airline industry. Some guys absolutely hate life while working night shift. If you don't think you can learn to adapt your life while working night shift, then the airline industry would not be for you. Also, if you want to feel valued at work and feel like it's a family atmosphere, you will be hard pressed to find that in the airlines. So once again, it boils down to what is important to you in life? Wages, benefit, and retirement will all be much better at a large major airline (cargo even better than passenger). Family life, work hours, and the intangible benefits would likely be better in corporate. I remember interviewing at a corporate place that would pay for you to get a private, instrument, and commercial pilot's license. Then you could fly yourself and your team of mechanics to a client that needed maintenance. You won't ever get that with an airline.
My advice would be to make a list of what you want and prioritize them. How much do you want to earn? Where do you want to live? What do you want to focus on (types of planes, types of mx like avionics or engines)? Are you willing to work nights/holidays? Then ask which operations offer those. After you make a list, I imagine your path will become very clear.
I cannot speak to the business perspective or GA, but all in all, I really enjoy working in the airline industry. Some guys absolutely hate life while working night shift. If you don't think you can learn to adapt your life while working night shift, then the airline industry would not be for you. Also, if you want to feel valued at work and feel like it's a family atmosphere, you will be hard pressed to find that in the airlines. So once again, it boils down to what is important to you in life? Wages, benefit, and retirement will all be much better at a large major airline (cargo even better than passenger). Family life, work hours, and the intangible benefits would likely be better in corporate. I remember interviewing at a corporate place that would pay for you to get a private, instrument, and commercial pilot's license. Then you could fly yourself and your team of mechanics to a client that needed maintenance. You won't ever get that with an airline.
My advice would be to make a list of what you want and prioritize them. How much do you want to earn? Where do you want to live? What do you want to focus on (types of planes, types of mx like avionics or engines)? Are you willing to work nights/holidays? Then ask which operations offer those. After you make a list, I imagine your path will become very clear.